Epistemic Closure On The Left?

Zeljka Buturovic and Dan Klein have a new paper about which Americans understand basic economics. Todd Zywicki summarizes:

67% of self-described Progressives believe that restrictions on
housing development (i.e., regulations that reduce the supply of
housing) do not make housing less affordable.

51% believe that mandatory licensing of professionals (i.e.,
reducing the supply of professionals) doesn’t increase the cost of
professional services.

Perhaps most amazing, 79% of self-described Progressive believe
that rent control (i.e., price controls) does not lead to housing
shortages.

And adds:

Note that the questions here are not whether the benefits of these
policies might outweigh the costs, but the basic economic effects of
these policies. Those identifying as “libertarian” and “very conservative” were the
most knowledgeable about basic economics. Those identifying as
“Progressive” and “Liberal” were the worst.

My own view is that "who in the general public understands economics
best" is very sensitive to which questions we ask. Libertarian-leaning
voters have a better understanding of government failure, but
left-leaning voters are more likely to understand adverse selection or
aggregate demand management. Which is a more important topic? That
may depend on the researcher's own point of view. What's the closest
we can come to a value-neutral test of whether elites or the "common
man" understand economic reasoning better?

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